Black Lion
by Diluculo
Summary: Some major spoilers, individual chapters marked: :anthology: For all who may be convinced in the slightest that Largo is boring... It's time to set things right.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I don't own rights to the game, the characters, anything—as much as I wish I did.

**A/N: **I didn't actually write these with any purpose other than upping my word count for NaNo, and that in itself just goes to show how interesting Largo can be. Read on, skeptics.

**Spoilers:** Largo's past.

* * *

Dust rolled lazily from the wheels of a lone caravan creeping its way down the worn road to Baticul. As the city drew into sight, Badaq straightened his back. He jerked the reins of the two bipedal reptiles that were pulling his coach. A smile formed across his hardened features as the dazzling violet clouds of sunset framed his hometown perfectly. Home, finally. It had been a long journey through the desert, but now he could come back to his beautiful wife, Sylvia, and his beloved daughter, Meryl. They would be thrilled to see him, as usual. His job as a caravan guard kept him away from his family, and though it pained him, their smiles at the end of a long day made it worthwhile. After all, he couldn't give up now; his title of the Lion of the Desert had earned much respect from travelers, and he received heavy tips from his clients. 

Almost there. He urged the pair of monsters faster, but they were unwilling to speed their pace, the toll of both fatigue and hunger causing them to lag. Badaq noticed their pain, and he let the supple leather straps fall slack in realization.

"Come on, almost home!" he cheered them on lightly. The city was fast approaching, then he was at the gates. A soldier fresh for the night shift verified his passport and identification, then allowed him through with a passive wave.

Badaq rode to the town square. His house was not far; it sat practically on the docks (at his wife's request—she loved the ocean). The normally jovial air of the city was dulled. On any weekday, this would not have been strange. However, today was Loreleiday—most of the citizens had tomorrow off from work, so it was a popular time for late-night parties.

Badaq's grin only grew wider the closer he got his home, his family. How pleased little Meryl would be when he showed her the souvenir he'd brought from Chesedonia! The trading post was a haven for all manner of odds and ends, and he'd found just the right gift for his precious daughter—a cute doll that came with extra clothes so that it could be dressed and redressed. He couldn't wait to see her face light up when he showed her!

Badaq halted the beasts with a gentle tug on the reins. The two monsters slumped down gratefully. He removed their harnesses and led them to the backyard, where he tied them to a wooden beam. As he rounded the corner of the small cottage, he noticed that there was no light on inside. They must have gone to bed early. No matter, Sylvia certainly wouldn't mind waking to see him, and she would probably even fetch Meryl as well, despite he baby's reluctance to fall asleep in the first place.

After securely hitching the leashes to their respective posts, Badaq fed the reptiles and supplied them with water, patting each on the head and murmuring his thanks to them. They purred rustily under the man's broad palm and wolfed their hard-earned meals.

He made his way back around to the front of the house. He tapped the door lightly. When no answer came, he knocked more firmly, but there was still no reply. Frowning, Badaq jostled the doorknob and called to his wife.

"Sylvia, my dear, are you home?"

There was no response. One more try.

"Sylvia, Meryl, I'm home! And I've brought a present from Chesedonia for my precious little daughter!"

His strong bass voice died in a ghostly echo. They hadn't heard him? Badaq peered through the window of the door anxiously, but the blaze of sunset rendered the interior of his home a fathomless black in contrast. Cupping a hand around his eyes, he tried again to see past the darkness.

"Meryl! Father's home!" He grasped the doorknob once more, but the perspiration that coated his hand caused it to slip from the highly polished brass. He ran a finger down the edge of the door frame, then levered his great girth against its weakest point. After a few tense seconds of muffled grunting, the door finally gave way and swung open.

He grew frustrated as the ten seconds that his eyes took to adjust to the dark formulated more of the grotesque scenes he was struggling to force from his mind. He blinked once more, then gasped at what he saw.

The house was empty. Everything was in perfect condition, and it caused him to blanch with fear inwardly. Surely this was some joke. It would all be fine.

"Sylvia, honey? Meryl?"

Badaq cautiously stepped toward the bedrooms at the rear of the building. The kitchen, bathroom, and den were immaculate as far as he could see. It had to be a joke, some silly prank just for their amusement, right? Nothing was wrong. No. Nothing at all.

Right?

The two bedrooms bore no evidence of upset. There, on his left, the bed in which Sylvia and he slept was made, the dressers and full-length wardrobe also in flawless order. Meryl's crib was where he had last seen it: pulled from the other bedroom so that it was within three feet of Sylvia's side of the bed.

Badaq backed away slowly, his gut contorting viciously. It wasn't normal. But it had to be. Sylvia never cared to do housework, putting her child and husband before the petty stereotypical "woman's work" outside of what was absolutely necessary.

Right. The city was safe. Nothing could have happened. They were somewhere in Baticul, shopping, maybe, or still waiting to surprise him somewhere. Somewhere! That's it. He could ask one of the guards. Surely they saw all who came and left the area without fail.

Badaq locked the door behind him and glanced around for the nearest guard. There! Someone always had to tend to the docks. Always.

"Excuse me, sir, but have you seen a woman with a baby girl around here lately?"

"No, I'm sorry, sir." The questioned guard saluted Badaq swiftly. "I only just arrived for my shift about a half an hour ago."

"Oh, I see. Thank you," Badaq said deeply. He bowed graciously and turned on his heel. What now? Surely they would turn up. Of course they would. Why yes, of course.

He returned to the house again, unsure of what to do. Anything was just better than standing around. He paced through every room of the house four times, then exited and encircled the entirety of their modest plot of land and came right back inside. With a ragged sigh, he finally collapsed into one of the kitchen chairs.

He closed his eyes, ruffling his cobalt hair absently. She was too down-to-earth for something silly like this, he knew, but he so hoped he was wrong. Anything else would be toward the negative. No. Nothing like that. Mustn't think like that.

His eyes snapped open at the thought of what could happen in the future. What if he was blamed for their disappearance? He'd be banished from Baticul! He had a job here, was well known and trusted by the citizens of the royal city! The thought of moving and rebuilding those friendships sickened him.

It was then he noticed the dusk sun. It doused itself in the Abberian Strait, the last few rays grasping at the waning day.

Slowly, he reached into one of his voluminous pockets and pulled from it the doll he'd bought for Meryl. He almost felt tears in his eyes as the last strands of denial faded.

The doll's eyes were the same color as the sunset: blood red.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I don't own rights to the game, the characters, anything—as much as I wish I did.

**A/N:** Chapter 11.

**Spoilers:** None really, but to Theor Forest just in case.

* * *

Sync and Largo moved through the forest swiftly and silently. Their mission was of utmost urgency, and they didn't have time to deal with the Malkuthian soldiers that patrolled the area. Their orders were to kill as many as they needed, so long as they were not caught in the act.

The more agile of the two scouted ahead a good ten yards or so, only allowing Largo to proceed after he had confirmed the vacancy of the area. In some cases, a few wandering soldiers or their pet dogs that were trained to attack intruders would be present. Sync would quickly dispatch them to allow his parter to follow at his decisive nod.

As they went, they sought a hiding spot. It was always useful, as Sync had pointed out, to have somewhere to go in case of emergencies, especially when on missions such as theirs, where the main objective was to not be caught. After much poking and prodding and exploring, it was decided that the rock formation behind a tiny lake was their best option. Both noted the location, though Sync only needed to know it in case they needed to meet up after its use, as his escape route would be the usual: straight up a tree. The deft God-General had a small but supple frame, and his knack for scampering up trees or sheer walls in the blink of an eye was one of his most useful abilities. Supplement that with the ability to use high-level fonic artes, and Sync made the perfect assassin; however, he was rarely used as such.

All of a sudden, a wolf pounced from behind. Largo grunted in surprise as it latched onto the back of his tabbard. Sync glanced back quickly, just in time to see the Black Lion knock the wolf unconscious with the blunt edge of his scythe, It fell to the ground, twitching, and one kick left it invisible under a lush overhanging tree. He nodded to his green-haired companion, and they continued.

At the end of the path, however, their luck took a turn for the worse. A Malkuthian soldier was making his way down the trail, and he came head on.

Sync's warning spared Largo the trouble of detection by the guard. The older man dodged back behind a tree. Sync took him down, but the soldier's final cry was one that Sync would rather not have been loosed. Surely the entire forest full of guards now knew of their presence, even if the call was not that of a standard-case alert to his fellow recruits.

Largo peered from behind the tree, questioningly signaling Sync for a status report. Sync mouthed "stray hidden", then scaled the tree as quickly as he could. In half a second, he had found a perch just shy of the top and was completely concealed. Largo fell back and moved the bushes around him so as to cover himself more efficiently. After he was satisfied, he sent Sync another sign, letting the sun flash off the scythe's blade three times in rapid succession. Sync was about to reply when a small earthquake triggered. He clung to the branch, and he saw the foliage where Largo was rustle slightly. He took a deep breath, then another to steady himself.

Getting back into position, the Tempest watched the road slyly. His prey would come.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** Don't own TotA, sadly.

**A/N: ** I didn't actually write these with any purpose other than upping my word count for NaNo, and that in itself just goes to show how interesting Largo can be. Read on, skeptics.

**Spoilers:** Second visit to Zaleho Volcano.

* * *

Arietta grunted, plunging through the forest doggedly. She panted, pushing herself through the foliage. Tears blurred her vision as she stumbled on a protruding root. The liger beside her paused to lend its back as a support for her to pull herself up and continue. She battered overhanging leaves away stubbornly, the usual familiarity of the Cheagle Woods somehow shattered in her rage. Another woody obstacle sent her down with a shout. 

"Arietta!" Largo the Black Lion finally caught up to her. He was breathing slightly more heavily than usual. The God-General knelt to her side comfortingly. He grasped her tiny hand and brought her back to her feet. "We're not in such a hurry. You must slow down or you'll hurt yourself."

She glared up at him and bared her savage little fangs. A wild fury rose behind her eyes, and Largo thought for a fleeting moment that she was going back to how she was raised upon seeing her old home. He reached to stroke her hair gently, and Arietta let her harsh gaze soften. Largo gave her a fatherly smile. "Have you calmed down?"

She frowned, cringing, and shook her head to say that yes, she was calm, but also in pain. She fell back to her knees, clutching her stomach. "Doesn't it hurt you, too? Why aren't you in pain?!"

Largo looked away slowly. "It does, Arietta. Having your replica data extracted is not a painless process. The aftereffects could last...who knows how long."

Arietta brought her tear stained face up again. "We have to keep going! I won't let Anise get away with killing Ion!"

Largo held his breath. He could so easily tell her the truth, but no one could bar ire as powerful as this. "Very well. But please keep your health in mind. If you wear yourself out here, you will have no strength left to fight."

She regained her bearings for the third time in the past few minutes. "Yes." She led the liger in the direction of its den, leaning on its muscular torso. It walked carefully, giving her silent gestures and messages to help her avoid the concealed roots on which she could so easily injure herself.

Largo nudged the overhanging limbs aside with his scythe as much as he could without making so much noise as to scare the wildlife into hiding. However, it became apparent after a while that even the birdsong that was so persistent in the Cheagle Woods hadquieted. There was hardly a sign of life from any monsters other than that of the ligers. They became more common as they neared their den. Arietta gave a small shuddering sigh as they descended the roots that allowed the beasts to navigate the tunnel.

The underground cavern was dimly lit by various holes in the roof and the opening from which they had come. The dank interior was accented by the moss and fungi that clung to the rotting roots that poked in through the walls from the surrounding earth. Spiderwebs connected the stone and wood in delicate, dew-strung lace. The ceiling dripped with moisture, providing an eerie background _plick _on the deteriorating logs every few seconds or so. The liger's nest in the rear of the cave was comprised of bedraggled bramble that had been hauled back from the riverbed. It, too, was covered in moss, but it was the liger queen that used to keep it dry for her young; now it was damp and soggy in her absence. Arietta felt more tears come on, but she fought them back. She would have her revenge on Anise for her mother and Ion.

She walked to the nest and peered inside. There, the remains of the eggs of her mother's last brood lay scattered, the rigid shells and wizened innards mulched together and then torn asunder. Her brothers and sisters _were_ there, but Anise's meddling had not only cost the life of the liger queen, but also that of Arietta's siblings. And later, she had murdered Ion in the Zaleho Volcano! Anise could not get away with that. Arietta swung her doll around, and she turned to face Largo.

The man's face was hard, and he looked troubled. Arietta cocked her head quizzically. "What's wrong?"

Largo took a moment to respond. "Oh, nothing you should worry about, Arietta."

She gave a sultry grunt. "Tell me. I want to know."

"I just wish you didn't have to do this," Largo replied with a sigh. "Killing Anise, I mean."

"She killed Mommy, though! _And_ Ion! She deserves to die for what she did to me!" Arietta whined loudly. "I'll never forgive her!"

"If that is your resolve, then I cannot stop you. You would honestly lay down your life for Ion, even after his death, wouldn't you?"

Arietta gasped. She hadn't thought of it that way. "Of course I would! I...I..."

"You loved Ion, didn't you?" said Largo under his breath.

"I-I--! Um, I mean...I cared about him, but--! He was like--!" stammered the God-General.

Largo nodded. "I'm truly sorry. It's not my place to inquire on such a thing." He turned to watch the entrance of the den.

Arietta hugged her doll tighter to her chest. She had loved Ion, but not like that kind of love. He was...irreplaceable. That's all there was about him. All she knew was that Ion was her friend, and Anise had taken that from her, so he must be avenged.


End file.
